


The Hard Way

by idiosyncraticWordsmith (literaryAspirant)



Series: Paradox-9 [2]
Category: Destiny (Video Games)
Genre: Existential Questions, Gen, Self-Identity, early life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-03
Updated: 2019-10-03
Packaged: 2020-11-22 22:50:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 788
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20881964
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/literaryAspirant/pseuds/idiosyncraticWordsmith
Summary: Paradox-9, shortly after being Raised by his Ghost, Lexicon, makes his way towards the City, and finds a jumpship in need of work that can help him get there; in the process, he continues his process to learn more about himself in this new life of his.





	The Hard Way

“Is this it?” Paradox asked.

“I’m afraid so,” Lexicon affirmed.

They had trekked for days across the vast grasslands, bouncing questions and information back and forth. Or rather, Paradox shot questions at Lexicon, and Lexicon bounced answers back. Paradox had no limit to his confusion and curiosity, and everytime he looked up to the night sky, he felt even more questions bubble up. During the daytime, the sun gave him fewer tastes of inspiration, but they came all the same.

Now they had come to a broken down old warehouse, within which Lexicon had detected a simple jumpship. The place seemed abandoned, but Paradox couldn’t help but feel a bit of disappointment at what he was looking at. The ship’s paint had been bleached by the sunlight edging in through the cracks in the building, and the moss and vegetation had covered a great deal of it.

Lexicon began scanning it through, examining it, seeing which parts needed saving, which were fine, and which were beyond redemption. Paradox approached it slowly, examining it carefully with his own eyes, which he knew were infinitely more limited than Lexicon’s, but he couldn’t let Lexicon do everything himself. Less out of a spirit of cooperation and more out of a hunger to do something productive. Something useful. He’d been dead who knows how long, and now he wanted to make up for lost time.

“It will take a bit of time, but I can get it to fly,” Lexicon assured.

“Walk me through it,” Paradox said. Lexicon stared blankly at him.

“Beg pardon?” Lexicon finally said.

“Tell me what I need to do to fix it,” Paradox clarified.

“I can fix it myself,” Lexicon assured, “much faster, and with less effort.”

“If I don’t know how to fix it, then what happens if its damaged and I can’t rely on your help?” Paradox pointed out.

“I’m your Ghost,” Lexicon reminded, “you’ll never be without me.”

“Lex,” Paradox stated, “Humor me.”

If Ghosts had an analog to a shrug, Paradox figured Lexicon just did it. “Have it your way. At least let me fabricate the tools you’ll need.”

“Deal,” Paradox agreed, moving over to the ship and preparing to get to work as Lexicon guided him through what needed to be done.

“You’re not like most Guardians,” Lex noted as Paradox worked. “Most of them prefer the easy way out.”

“Hm…” Paradox mumbled. “So I take the hard way.”

“That is the natural conclusion to not taking the easy way,” Lex retorted dryly.

“I’m trying to develop myself. Facts like that are good for me to know,” Paradox said.

“I don’t follow,” Lexicon confessed.

“You know everything you need to know about yourself and the world,” Paradox explained. “I don’t. You’ve been catching me up plenty about the world - Fallen and Hive and the Collapse and all of that - but you don’t know anything about me, and I don’t know anything about me, either. I… don’t like that. Something in me squirms everytime I come up with an ‘I don’t know’ about myself. So I’m trying to fill in the blanks. ‘Takes the hard way,’ that’s a fact about me. That’s a thing I can fill a blank with.”

“...I see,” was all Lexicon said. Paradox felt like he didn’t really understand at all, but at the very least he wasn’t being condescending or demeaning. Paradox simply continued his work on the jumpship. He enjoyed the practical work, the sense of learning, gaining new skills. He filled in more blanks with that information. ‘Likes working with hands’, he thought. ‘Craves new skills’.

“What is your favorite color?” Lexicon asked out of the blue. Paradox paused his work, and looked over at the Ghost. Ghosts lacked much in the way of facial features, but his tone seemed serious. Paradox thought for a moment.

“What color are my eyes?” He asked back.

“White,” Lexicon answered. “As is your vocalizer.”

“White, then,” Paradox confirmed. “My favorite color is white.”

“Your side-antennae are red,” Lexicon added on.

“Second favorite color,” Paradox shrugged, returning to work.

“Favorite time of day?” Lexicon queried.

“Night time,” Paradox answered. It was when he was risen. And he liked the stars.

“Favorite food?” Lexicon asked.

“Haven’t had any yet,” Paradox answered.

“Favorite pastime?”

“Right now, fixing things.”

The questions kept coming as Paradox brought the ship back to life, little by little, hour by hour. It was well into the dark of night before the ship was even halfway ready to fly; and Paradox fell asleep that night to the sound of questions and answers. He only realized what Lexicon was doing as he was drifting off to sleep.

Helping him fill in the blanks, one by one. The hard way.


End file.
